Across the globe, October marks Mental Health Month. It’s an opportunity to acknowledge and address the challenges of mental health and start conversations that create lasting change.
For many in our community, there is no more challenging period than that of parenting. When your primary focus is raising young children, it’s easy for your own mental, physical and emotional health to take a backseat.
Georgia’s story: accessing postnatal help in Boroondara
Boroondara mum, Georgia, recently sat down with our Maternal Child Health (MCH) service to share her story and her experience of parenthood.
‘Becoming a new mum is like getting a role that you’ve never done before, without a job description and no experience, and you’re expected to hit the ground running. Immediately,’ said Georgia.
‘Every day felt like a week in the beginning. I was exhausted and I wasn’t able to get anything done that I wanted to.’
Through MCH, Georgia was connected to several educational and social programs, including the MCH Breastfeeding Clinic, the Sleep and Settling Clinic and the Circle of Security.
‘These things actually just increased my confidence and then after that it was so much easier. It kind of helped with my sanity,’ she said.
For Georgia, part of the benefit of participating in programs like the Circle of Security was finding and connecting with other parents.
‘I enjoyed meeting with other mums who were in the same situation as me and I realised I wasn’t the only one to have gone through these challenges,’ Georgia said.
